NEW DELHI - India’s unemployment rate for people aged 15 and above fell to 5.1% in July from 5.5% in June, matching its lowest level in four months, according to National Statistics Office data reported by Reuters.

A Reuters poll had forecast a July unemployment rate of 5.4%. The latest reading matched the 5.1% recorded in March and was below the 5.5% rates reported for both May and June.

The improvement was concentrated in rural areas. Rural unemployment fell to 4.5% from 5.0% in June, while the urban rate edged up to 6.7% from 6.6%, Reuters reported, citing National Statistics Office data. Unemployment among men declined to 5.0% from 5.3%, while the rate for women fell to 5.4% from 5.9%.

Labour-force participation also increased. The labour force participation rate, which measures the share of people aged 15 and above who are working or seeking work, rose to 55.4% from 54.4%. The worker-population ratio, measuring the share of the population that is employed, increased to 52.5% from 51.4%.

Female labour-force participation rose to 34.4% from 32.7% in June. The increase was stronger in rural areas, where female participation climbed to 38.8% from 36.6%. July’s overall labour-force participation rate returned to its March level of 55.4%, while the worker-population ratio remained just below the 52.6% recorded in March.

Reuters said the July estimates were based on the Current Weekly Status measure under the Periodic Labour Force Survey and covered 371,021 people nationwide, including 211,411 in rural areas and 159,610 in urban areas.

The National Statistical Office, under the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation, revamped the PLFS methodology from January 2025 to produce monthly estimates for both rural and urban India.

Under the rotational panel design, selected households are visited four times in four consecutive months. MoSPI has also advised users to account for methodological changes when comparing the revamped series with PLFS estimates produced under the earlier design.

The ministry has cautioned against treating short-term movements in the monthly figures as evidence of a lasting labour-market trend. In its PLFS guidance, MoSPI said: “Changes are expected in the monthly PLFS ratios due to increased frequency and seasonal changes but do not necessarily reflect secular trends.”